Titan Times 2022-2023
February Newsletter
Upcoming Important Dates
Jan 30th- Feb 10th: “Souperbowl” Canned Food Drive
Feb 3rd Friday: Early Release K-1st: 1:20pm 2nd-8th: 1:30pm
Feb 6th-10th:- Spirit Week- See flyer for details
Feb 10th Fri: Early Release K-1st: 1:20pm 2nd-8th: 1:30pm
Feb 10th: Student Council Dance for 6th, 7th, 8th
Feb 13th - Feb 17th: Book Fair in the Media Center
Feb 16th: Half Day -Parent Teacher Conferences K-1st: 11:25am and 2nd-8th: 11:35am
Feb 17th: Half Day K-1st: 11:25am and 2nd-8th: 11:35am
Feb 20th: No School
Feb 21st: Student Council Sonic Night 5pm to 8pm
Feb 24th: Early Release K-1st: 1:20pm 2nd-8th: 1:30pm
Feb 28th: Basketball Game away at Gavilan Peak 4:30pm
March 2nd- Future Kindergarten Night 4:30pm-5:30pm
March 2nd- Family Great Skate Night 5:00pm-8:00pm
NOW ACCEPTING TAX CREDIT!! $400 MARRIED OR $200 SINGLE!!!
DID YOU KNOW???
special provision (until June 30, 2024) where tax credit monies can support capital expenditures!
Now is the perfect time to make an Extracurricular Activity Tax Credit to Terramar and receive a dollar for dollar reduction on your State of Arizona 2022 tax liability. Your school tax credit donations can provide Terramar students with opportunities to participate in after school programs, field trips, music and athletic programs or any other extracurricular activity. The Arizona tax credit program (A.R.S. 43-1089.01) allows a tax credit of up to $200 for individuals and up to $400 for married couples, filing jointly, in support of extracurricular activities. More information and links to donate online are available on the DVUSD website.
Donations made between January 1 and April 15 may be applied to the prior tax year. Payments made from January 1, 2022, through April 15, 2023, can be applied to an individual's 2022 Arizona Taxes.
If you have any questions and/or would like to donation in person, please stop by between 7:30am-4:00pm.
To make a tax credit donation online click here https://az-deervalley.intouchreceipting.com/
Our Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Program- TOP 20
What is TOP 20?- Dinner Discussion Questions
What is TOP 20?
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
Top 20 Training provides effective strategies and practices to develop potential, eliminate negativity, address challenges, and enhance the culture in schools, at home, and in the workplace through one-of-a-kind, live and on-line trainings, books, journals, and curriculum.
February TOP 20!
This month in class during our Top 20 time middle school is reviewing “Star Qualities”. They should be able to understand the definition of EQ/IQ . They are also learning how developing our Star Qualities is important, and what valuable Star Quality are. Kindergarten through 6th grade are learning about conflict resolution. They are learning to use “I” statements to keep communication open. Below are a few Dinner discussions questions you can have with your child to bring Top20 home and help your child use it in all aspects of their day.
Middle school dinner discussion questions:
What Star Qualities do you have? Are there any you would like to have?
Kindergarten-6th grade dinner discussion questions:
What is conflict? How are you using “I” statements to keep communication open?
Sports Update- Spring Season BASKETBALL, SPIRIT LINE, and TRACK-- Athletic Coordinator Katie Wahlstrom katie.wahlstrom@dvusd.org
Crossing Guard/Dismissal Procedures-- Safety First
Parents: If the crossing guard is in the crosswalk YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO DRIVE THROUGH IT.
Parents/Guardians please remind your student to use the crosswalk at Happy Valley or at 67th Ave. Running across traffic on Happy Valley is very dangerous and against the law.
Happy Valley Crosswalk- Use the WEST side of the intersection with the two crossing guards available 7:50am-8:10am and 1:20pm-1:45pm and 2:50pm-3:15pm
For Desert Moon- If your student rides a bike or walks from Terramar to the crosswalk/neighborhood, they must ride/walk on the sidewalk (because it is opposite traffic and safest to be out of the street). Wait for the crossing guard to cross students from 7:30pm-8:10pm and 1:30pm-1:55pm and 3:00pm-3:25pm.
Morning Drop Off/Late Drop Off
Every minute of learning is important. Please make every effort to have students arrive at school on time. Learning starts at 8:15am for our 180 days of school. Did you know that if your student is just 3 minutes late to school for 30 of the 180 days, they would have missed 90 minutes of learning? When a student arrives late to learning, anxiety builds for them as they hurry to be engaged in learning. This can easily take other students off task and could stop the teacher from teaching. Being late for school is difficult for students and teachers. Please make every effort to have students at school before 8:15am. Excessive tardiness can result in disciplinary action.
Library Corner
DON'T MISS OUR UPCOMING BOOK FAIR!
Monday, February 13th to Friday, Friday, February 17th
HOURS:
Monday: 8:00 am to 6:00 pm
Tuesday: 8:00 am to 4:00 pm
Wednesday: 8:00 - 4:00 pm
Thursday: 8:00 am to 6:00 pm
Friday: 8:00 am to Noon
Looking for a Valentine's Day treat for your child's teacher? Come to the book fair and purchase some of the items on your teacher's wish list!
We have so many amazing Terramar families that help us by purchasing items at the book fair! Please stop by our library and shop for some amazing books!
Tina Figgins
Volunteer at Terramar
We are looking for parents and community members to come and share their time and knowledge with our Terramar community. Anyone who volunteers at our school must attend a one-time volunteer training.
THANK YOU TERRAMAR FAMILIES!
Thank you to the famlies that have donated gently used books to our Library! This year, thanks to your generosity, we have been able to add over 200 books to our shelves! We appreciate you so much!
We are always happy to accept any school-appropriate, gently used books. Your donation will be enjoyed by students at Terramar for years to come.
If you haven't yet had the chance, please consider donating your gently used books to our school library. Donations may be brought to the front office and are greatly appreciated. To contact our Library, please email tina.figgins@dvusd.org.
OPEN POSITIONS! In search of...
1 paraprofessional positions 6.75 hours a day
2 HOUR LUNCH MONITOR
Crossing Guard AM/PM on Happy Valley
Crossing Guard AM/PM on Happy Valley
Cross Guard PM at Desert Moon
Cafeteria...New Procedures if you plan to eat with your student
NO FOOD DELIVERY SERVICES WILL BE ACCEPTED- DRIVER WILL BE TURNED AROUND
***Must be on emergency contact form and/or have parent/guardian inform office via phone call that student will have a visitor not on Powerschools list***
** Must present ID**
2. For safety/security reasons, no additional friends can sit at the table.
3. Food is for you and your student, not for others.
4. Lunch with loved ones is only in the cafe and not during recess time.
5. If you have students in multiple grade levels, for safety/security reasons, you must return to the office between lunch times.
Terramar PTSA Information
Hello Terramar PTSA Members,
Happy new year! The PTSA is coming off a hot semester of activity and looking forward to an excellent Spring. Our January general meeting was canceled but we wanted to update you on all the PTSA committee business happening. Our membership stands at 362, and new members can always sign up online: https://azpta-04379467.memberhub.com/store?limit=21&live=true
We held 4 successful community events in the Fall: Trunk & Treat, Veteran’s Day, Turkey Bingo, and Movie Night! We also had 2 restaurant nights at Pizza Hut and Sonic. Our Spring events are looking to be just as exciting with a Great Skate Night on March 2nd, a few restaurant nights, and hopefully something special for all you amazing parents for Mother’s and Father’s Day.
In addition to our very successful Fall fundraiser, where we raised over $33,000, each of our community events has had fundraising elements, where we generated over $3,500 combined. And as always, your direct contributions as donations or spirit wear sales are extremely helpful.
Our PTSA’s Titan Goodness committee was instrumental in making sure all Terramar students living in local group homes had personalized gifts for the holiday. Thank you to those that donated items in December for these students!
Our Titan Appreciation Committee provides monthly birthday lunches, and we can tell you that all the staff has been extremely grateful for these delicious lunches. We also helped Terramar ease into their holidays with a December filled with appreciation each day for the Terramar staff. More appreciation to come this Spring!!!
Visit our webpage: https://www.terramarptsa.org/
Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/terramaracademyoftheartsPTSA/
Please reach out with any questions, and thank you for your dedication to the Terramar Academy of the Arts
Your 2022-2023 Terramar PTSA Executive Board
Woody Mason, President
Miranda Woodward-Duran, Vice President
Stephanie Walaszek, Treasurer
Morgan Gaertner, Secretary
Link for Terramar PTSA Website http://www.terramarptsa.org/
Frys Community Rewards
Sign up for Fry's Community Rewards. Money from your purchases gets donated to Terramar. You’ll need a Fry’s digital account: link for digiital account information https://www.frysfood.com/account/communityrewards/
Video link to show the sign up process for Fry’s Community Benefits: https://youtu.be/GeUC4UD5nvE
UPCOMING EVENTS....
Decades Night at Great Skate on March 2nd 5:00pm-8:00pm
Only WATER allowed in the Academic Building
Communication- Who should I call when....
Front Parking Lot- Please park at CCV
In the afternoon the long RIGHT hand turn line is preventing our BUSES from entering the BUS BAY. If you are able...Please park at CCV so that our school buses can make the RIGHT into the bus bay in the afternoon.
Late buses into the bus bay equals students waiting, which equals families panicked at home because of late arrivals to bus stops, which equals late busses to other schools for pick up. The dominos that fall are many. Please please park at CCV and use our Crossing Guards on the WEST side of the intersection.
Buses- Strict District Guidelines
Bullying or Peer Conflict?
WHAT IS NOT BULLYING? Adults must realize that not every unkind thing a child does constitutes bullying. For example:
Being left out is not always bullying. It’s natural for kids to have a select group of friends. Although they should be kind towards everyone, it’s unrealistic to expect them to be close friends with every child they know, and be invited to every function or event.
Experiencing conflict is not bullying. Learning to deal with conflict is a normal part of growing up. The key is for children to learn how to solve their problems peacefully and respectfully.
Not playing fair is not bullying. Wanting a game to be played a certain way is not bullying. Children understand the concept of sharing, and should take turns being in charge of the game.
When observing the unkind behaviors your child experiences, be sure to label them correctly. This will help you know how to handle the situation appropriately so that your child can learn and grow from it.
(Ref. Policy JICK, JICK-R, JICK-EA, JICK-EB)
Bullying may occur when a student or group of students engages in any form of behavior that includes such acts as intimidation and/or harassment that:
has the effect of physically harming a student, damaging a student’s property, or placing a student in reasonable fear of harm or damage to property,
is sufficiently severe, persistent or pervasive that the action, behavior, or threat creates an intimidating, threatening, or abusive environment,
occurs when there is a real or perceived imbalance of power or strength, or
may constitute a violation of law
SRR handbook 2022-2023 (pages 2-4)
Friday Early Release (Professional Learning Community PLC time)- Why do we have it? What do the teachers do once the students leave?
School ends early on most Fridays so that Terramar teachers can collaborate with other teachers at other schools who teach the same subject/grade on best teaching practices to meet the needs of all learners. Our teachers will compare student data with teachers at other schools to discuss best teaching practices.
A Professional Learning Community AKA PLC is the formal name for teachers meeting to share/compare data to make sure that all students receive the best teaching practices to master the standards.
There are four guiding questions that are answered in each PLC as standards are taught. They are:
1. What do you we want students to know and be able to do?
2. How will we know students have learned?
2a. What instructional practices will produce our best results?
3. What do we do if students have not learned?
4. What do we do when students have already shown mastery?
Please visit this website for more information on what is a PLC https://www.dvusd.org/Page/76959
Watch this video for more information:
Link for District Calendar
PLC Success Story Featuring 4th grade Mr. Cohon and Mrs. Kozubal
These past few months the 4th Grade Math PLC team has been having success creating formative and summative assessments together. They work closely as a team to analyze the standards to choose and create questions for students.
Based on our Math interim 1 Assessment and our Math Growth measure, the students are making progress. The vast majority made good growth. This is the result of sharing of ideas and teaching strategies among the PLC team members.
Currently as a team, we are focusing on creating level 4 questions for each standard. These challenging questions will help student develop a deeper understanding and require perseverance.
Our team is celebrating good student growth as a result of our PLC collaborations.
Early Student Pick Up
If it is necessary to pick up your student during school hours, please report to the school office to sign him or her out. The office will then call your student to the office. The student will not be called to the office prior to your arrival. For the safety and protection of all students: No student will be released to anyone except his/her parents/guardians or the responsible party indicated on the Emergency Card Picture I.D. will be required every time
Technology Challenges 4th-8th grade students
Parents, please partner with us in reminding your students to charge their chromebook daily at home. Think about proving a location in your home that is centrally located to help remind students of their responsibility to come to school with a fully charged chromebook ready for learning.
To purchase the device protection plan:
Birthday Treats
Birthday celebrations occur the last 10 minutes of the school day and must be pre-arranged with the teacher to avoid any student allergy concerns. Birthday treats are to be a cookie/cupcake/treat that is a small snack for students. Drinks are not permitted (only water in the classroom) Pizza is not appropriate.
There are two options for treats.
Option 1- Purchase the "Birthday Bucket" (TWO WEEKS IN ADVANCE) from the cafe using the following link https://www.dvusd.org/Page/65635
Option 2- Bring in small store bought peanut free items.
Birthday Items are not allowed to be shared during lunch time.
Cell Phone Policy K8
Parents, as a reminder.
Cell phones for all students are to remain off and in backpacks.
7th and 8th grade students may take them out at lunch ONLY.
No earbuds/headphones are to be worn during the school day.
Smart Watches can only be used for telling time during the school day. No APP or Internet usage during the day.
If you need to reach your student, please call the office at 623-445-7600
If a student uses their cell phone during the school day they will receive discipline according to the SRR handbook for defiance/insubordination.
Students who are not feeling well must report to the Nurse's office for treatment.
Titan Passport- Positive Behavior Intervention System- PBIS
Titan Passport
The Titan Passport was designed to represent a structured behavior program designed for students in Kindergarten through 8th grade. The Titan Passport is a communication tool between school and home that shares positive interactions and infractions on students’ behavior while on campus. Students have the opportunity to earn monthly rewards based on their positive behavior at school.
The TItan passport will be utilized during all classes, to give students the reinforcement of positive behaviors and reminders of school expectations. The passports are designed to travel between home and school, to give parents an idea on how students are performing behaviorally. Each teacher/administrator has the right to use his/her professional judgment to modify this plan for individual students as needed.
Titan Passports are utilized on a monthly basis, students will have the opportunity to restart each month earning positives and infractions. For the first few months students will be given grace and patience with lost and/or damaged cards. After the 1st quarter, students will be charged $0.50 for each replacement card and will also receive an infraction for not being prepared. For every 3 infractions students will receive a lunch detention. If teachers are seeing that students are earning more infractions than positives, they will work with administration to determine if the Passport is right for the student.
At the end of every month, students will have the opportunity to turn their passports points into prizes at the Titan Store. Identifiable points are Positives - Infractions = Final Points. In addition to the Titan Store, some grade levels have identified “extra rewards” for those students who meet a specific point value. The school will also hold random days to celebrate students’ positive achievements.
The Passports will be collected by the school to review any trends, analyze the data, and determine outcomes that can help identify necessary positive interventions for the campus.
Physical/verbal aggression, theft, vandalism, threatening acts, fighting, or any other major infraction listed in the DVUSD Student Rights and Responsibilities Handbook will warrant bypassing the Titan Passport guidelines and will result in immediate consequences.
Titan Weekly/Monthly Winner for showing great character
Titan Monthly Winners: At the end of each month the teachers will meet to discuss which student has exemplified TITAN (trustworthy, integrity, tenderhearted, accountability, noble) character for the entire month. These students are brought to the office to receive a backpack filled with goodies that has been "earned... not given". We post the names of these kids on our website and on the marquee.
Volunteering Information
We are always looking for parents/guardians to come and share their time and knowledge with our Terramar community. Anyone who volunteers at our school must attend a one-time volunteer training.
Link for calendar for volunteer training dates: https://www.dvusd.org/cms/lib/AZ01901092/Centricity/Domain/5182/Monthly-Calendar-62e991a26c186.pdf
Standards Based Mindset in Grading
Terramar embraces a comprehensive standards-based mindset and grading system that reports what students know and can do relative to standards by facilitating clearer, more targeted feedback.
This work is accomplished by reporting academic achievement separate from behaviors, tying assessment and grading exclusively to standards, prioritizing the most recent evidence of learning, and allowing for editing and resubmission of work.
Please visit our website https://www.dvusd.org/Domain/12421
and view our Reassessment, Late Work, and Cheating policies
Trouble with the Powerschools APP?
Please be aware that the mobile app does not display the details of tagged standards like the web-based program displays. We are working with the PowerSchools company to see if they can fix the app view to show those details of the standards. We will continue to communicate and provide updates with pertinent information. In the web-based view, if you don't see a number or letter progress, click the "i" to see the details. Thank you for continued patience and support.